Life & death cycles

By Jordan Cleland & Aidan Belanger
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Things die for other things to grow. 

Life is cyclical. This is a lesson we can learn from mushrooms as they decompose, regenerate, and repeat. Mushrooms are the endless cycle of growth, death, and rebirth. 

First, some science. Mushrooms are the ‘tip of the iceberg’ of mycelium, a larger organism which lies below ground, a network of cells breaking down decaying matter and transforming it into living soil. 

Long before humankind, the first complex life forms on land, fungi, made soil through mineral nourishment, which they spread to plants. In a nutshell, they turned the planet green and changed the composition of the atmosphere.

The helping hand fungi lends to decomposition ensures our forests are not buried in dead plant matter. It’s through the breaking down of death and the release of nutrients that plants are reborn and carry on growing. Poetic, isn’t it?

Not only do they keep our forests alive, they are part of the reason we exist. Every living, dying, and dead thing is connected. The life cycle, this recycling and regeneration, is owed to these sometimes delicious and other times deadly fungi. 

When people are less concerned with their impermanence, they can focus on creating meaning and value as they approach the end of their life.

Mycelium have been used more recently to help us face our own mortality. Research has shown that psilocybin, the drug found in psychedelic mushrooms, can relieve anxiety and depression, which are two major symptoms sometimes faced at the end of life or by those worried about their eventual death. Studies done with late-stage cancer patients show a decrease in fear surrounding loss of life. No wonder they’re called magic mushrooms. 

When people are less concerned with their impermanence, they can focus on creating meaning and value as they approach the end of their life.

Fear can obstruct ones ability to live in the present and to appreciate the time that’s left. When under the influence of psilocybin, perception of the current moment can become more apparent.

So next time you feel worried or scared for death, take a walk in the forest. Find other beings riding the cycles of life, death, and regeneration. Realize that you, a human being, are not so separate from nature, from mushrooms, from the decaying leaves underfoot. When we start to see life all around us, we see death too. And that’s okay.

If you’re still wrestling with these contemplations, send us a message.